How Do You Turn Your Property Into Airbnb Friendly

Chapter 1

My Investment Strategy – Generate Positive Cashflow

No matter how nice the property and the neighborhood is, I’m dead-set
against buying a negative cash flow property, for two reasons:

1) It’s a gamble. Housing prices can rise OR fall.

2) The “CAP RATE” (a measure of return-on-investment) is nonexistent on a

negative-cash-flow property. And I’m into making math-based decisions.

3) There’s a limit to how many negative-flow properties you can afford.

There’s no limit to how many “positive cash flow” properties you can afford –
property that lines your pocket with cash every month. (If your properties
put cash in your pocket each month, then the more you buy, the more you
can keep buying. The rich get richer.)

This is the key to good real estate investing. Always create win-wins
between yourself and your tenants. – Generating Positive Cashflow

How I ‘Accidentally’ Started a Vacation Rental Business

(Brief background for new readers: My partner and I now own fifty eight rental
units across twelve buildings under the name Luxury Boutique
Accommodation

Two years ago, I have seven properties that are renting out to expatriate
which are located in the prime location in Klang Valley. However due to the
downtown of economic and the weakening of ringgit, majority of the
expatriates have left back to their country and I was caught with a massive
mortgage bill to cover and I was like, how can I get over this and to secure a
positive cashflow for my properties. I came across this new business model
when I was travelling in Europe and Airbnb was the trend at that moment, so I
was thinking to myself, since im travelling alone, why not give it a try to stay in
other people house and experience the culture and local knowledge. It was
one of my best travel experience when I checked in into a local Scottish
couple where they welcome me as a family. To my surprise, I was thinking
that im just renting a space or a bed but they even cook me dinner and take
me out on the next day for visit to the local market and I travel like a local and
I get to experience how a local spend their day. Soon as Im back to Malaysia,
the first thing come across my mind is to open up my houses and run on this
vacation rental business

As soon as “I wonder if …” popped into my mind, my knee-jerk reaction was

to focus on the drawbacks of managing a vacation rental business.
 • More turnover.
• Higher vacancy
• Extra management
• Upfront costs of furnishing
• Higher guest expectations (full-service).

I observed those objections arising. And then I asked myself, “How can I
battle these?”

So, what is Airbnb or vacation rental business model?

According to Airbnb, they provide “a trusted community marketplace for

people to list, discover, and book unique accommodations around the world
….” Airbnb hosts list their properties - which can be single rooms, a suite of
rooms, apartments, moored yachts, houseboats, entire houses or even a
castle - on the Airbnb website. It's free to create a listing, and hosts decide
how much to charge per night, per week or per month. Each listing allows
hosts to promote properties through titles, descriptions, photographs with
captions and a user profile where potential guests can get to know a bit about
the hosts.

Travelers (or "guests") search the available database of properties by entering

details about when and where they'd like to travel. Travelers can further refine
searches by making selections for:

• Room type - entire place, private room or shared room

• Price - range from minimum to maximum
• Size - number of bedrooms, bathrooms and/or beds
• Amenities - wireless Internet, TV, kitchen, pool, pets, etc.
• Property type - standard properties such as apartments, houses and
bed & breakfasts, as well as non-standard accommodations such as
castles, caves, boat or even tents
• Host language - English, Chinese, Thai etc., including sign language
• Keywords - if the traveler is looking for something specific, such as
"oceanfront" or "close to National Park"

Chapter 2

Who should be a “ HOST”

Airbnb can benefit both hosts and travelers. Hosts get to meet people from
around the world while making a little extra money, and travelers can often
stay for less than the cost of a hotel room. In addition, many travelers enjoy
accommodations that offer a different experience from standard hotels. Many
users find the personalized service, both from hosts and from Airbnb's
customer service, makes for a good experience.

You Should Be a Host If:

• You want the cold, hard cash

• You’re looking for a side hustle
• You’re trying to pay down debt
• You’re restless and need a new project.
• You are friendly and responsive
• You have a general sense of trust in humanity

You Should NOT Be a Host If:

• You want a hands-off passive investment.

• You want to travel the globe, living on passive income.
• You have a crazy-hectic-busy-stressful job.
• You’re looking for an alternative to an index fund or rental property.
• You crave location independence.
• You hate Human Communication

For months, I fretted about WHY vacation-renting is so hands-on. “Is it me??

Do I suck at creating systems / checklists / automation?”

So how good is Airbnb?

There are a number of advantages to using Airbnb – at least in my

experience:

• It’s cheaper than staying in a hotel. Of course, you can choose an

Airbnb listing in an expensive castle (yes, they do have a few of those!)
but in most cases, especially in cities, you’ll find listings far below the
cost of a similar hotel room.
• Your experience can be truly unique – no drab cookie-cutter hotel
room.
• You’ll live locally. You can walk down the street to the market or the
local shops and interact with people in a way you never would if you
were staying in a hotel.
• Airbnb is easy to use. Just Sign up and look around. You don't have to
book.
• You can find unusual places to stay – caves and buses and all sorts of
places you might never have thought of. Oh yes, did I mention a castle
or two?
• You'll usually have access to a kitchen. For me that’s a huge plus. It
 means I can make my own breakfast and not be tempted by a fattening
all-you-can-eat buffet. I also don’t have go out for every meal. After a
busy sightseeing or work day I might prefer a light supper, putting my
feet up and watching the news. I can’t do that in my bathrobe in a
restaurant.
• You’ll have hosts. If you rent an entire place, your host won’t be on the
premises but you can always contact him or her with questions about
where to go or what to do. If you’re sharing a place, you’ll get some
great local interaction.

Let get Start Now!!

Here’s what happened next:

Step 1: Shopping Spree!

I’m shocked at how much stuff – lots and lots of stuff – is needed to furnish an
apartment. Yeah, there’s the obvious furniture:
! Mattress/boxspring
! Bed frame / headboard
! Sheets, comforter, pillows, duvet
! Dresser
! Couch, slipcover
! Window treatments
! Coffee table
! Bedside end table
! Reading lamp
! Kitchen table and diningroom chairs
! Plates, bowls, spoons, forks, knifes
! Pots, pans
! Mugs, glasses
! Coffeemaker
But after I began furnishing the space, I realized there was another LONG list
of things that I hadn’t even considered –
! Trash cans for kitchen/bath
! Hangers
! Dish towels
! Baking trays
! Placemats, potholders, can opener. (Who buys a can opener?
Isn’t that something everyone just has?)
! Bath mats, towels
! Cable TV! *Forehead slap!*I forgot that most people expect a TV
... along with a TV stand (that’s a furnishing category?), cable
box, remote control
! Oh yeah, and wireless internet!! Doh!
I set up the apartment with all of the “Consumer Disposables”
that create a good customer experience in a vacation rental,
such as:

• Toilet paper
 • Hand soap for kitchen/bath Shampoo, conditioner,
body soap Coffee, tea
• Dishwashing detergent
• Sponges and paper towels
• Laundry detergent and fabric softener Salt,
pepper, cooking oil
• Iron / Ironing board
• Hairdryer

And even few guests began requesting items that I still hadn’t
considered, such as a plunger and toilet brush. After all of this, after 5
solid days of carefully thinking through every possibility,

My first Bottom line: It takes a TON of stuff — especially small stuff —

to create a home away from home experience.

But don’t worry. I created a list of items that every new Airbnb host
needs available for free.

Step #2: Photograph the Space.

I have a new appreciation for interior photographers. After lots of trial
and error. Before we get to those, here’s important information every
Airbnb host should know:

Airbnb says they’ll send a professional photographer to your space, for

free. They claim they’ll send this person in less than two weeks.
I requested a visit from a professional photographer immediately and
nobody arrived for more than 2 months. Apparently, demand for
photographers exceeds the supply, in many markets.

If you’re interested in becoming an Airbnb host, you’ll need to take

great photos on your own. Here are some examples of pictures that I
took with no training and no special skill. They’re definitely not
professional caliber, but they’re good enough to allow me the benefit of
a fully booked Airbnb hosting calendar.

Quick tip: use an inexpensive wide angle lens to capture more of the
space, especially in confined room. Another tip: Get a range a both
details and larger, space defining shots. And max out the number of
photos on your listing.

If your pictures are decent, they will be one of your best sales tools.

Step #3: List the Space.

Although I’m referring to this as the “AirBnb ” I’m actually offering the
apartment on three websites – AirBnb.com, Agoda.com and
Booking.com
 Because I’m slightly a perfectionist, I scanned the neighborhood
competition and wrote a listing that could compete head to head with
the best of them.

I also added a map with pinpoints at all major restaurants, bars, shops,
salons, gyms, etc., within easy walking distance. (Which are a LOT.)

Step 4: Develop Procedures

Next, I developed a checklist of checkin, checkout and
turnover/vacancy procedures. This way, I don’t have to rely on my
(unreliable) memory. I can just follow my checklist.

Here are some examples:

• Walk through the unit after checkout to make sure nothing is
damaged/stolen. (My checklist features an inventory of all the stuff
within the apartment.)
• Refill any “consumer disposables” that are low. (Coffee? Sponges?
Soap?)
• Wash the linens, vacuuming, mopping, emptying the trash, and
overall cleaning up the unit after checkout.

Step 5: Create a Standard Guest Greeting

Finally, I created a page that welcomes guests and highlights the
amenities of the apartment. I anticipated FAQ’s: Here’s where you’ll
find the remote. Here’s the wireless internet password. Here’s how the
ceiling fan works. I wrote all of this into the FAQ guide.

This step is more for my benefit than the guests. You see, I want to
run a business – not have a business than runs me.

And the best way to execute that is to automate, by creating checklists

and procedures that I can give to anyone who steps in to fill my shoes
while I’m traveling.

When I create an FAQ page, I’m automatically giving my guests one

fewer reason to call me. This makes the business more hands off.

Six Lessons I Learned in My First Month as an AirBnb Host

After all this, what lessons or conclusions have I learned?

#1: Humans need a lot of crap.

Like seriously, when/why/how did we as a society get to the point in which we
need so much CRAP to maintain our existence?

I’m not finger pointing, as I’m as equally guilty of this as anyone. I maintain a
spatula and dish towels and sponges and dishwashing detergent in my own
home.
But can we just take a moment to reflect on the sheer volume of possessions
that we need in order to have a functioning home? It’s astounding. I’m not
moralizing; I’m just ... shocked, really.

It’s not something you think about, until you have to buy all of this junk in one
HUGE shopping spree.

#2: Know the difference between a commodity business vs. a service

business.

Running a vacation rental business is way different than offering a rental

property. I had long suspected this to be true, but the experience of going
through the motions really brought that lesson home.

When you invest in rental properties, you’re offering a commodity.In my

case, I renovate old run down homes (abandon or auction property) and sell it
in one year time increments (wholesale).

When you run a vacation rental, you’re offering a service.If someone wants
more towels, they’ll call you. It’s totally different than renting a vacant
apartment on a oneyear lease.

#3: Competitive pressures skew the market.

When you’re offering a rental property, you’re competing against other
investors.
But many of the other hosts on AirBnb aren’t investors. They’re owner -
occupants (or renter occupants) who list their personal home, and spend the
night at a friend or family members’ house, to make some extra cash.

That’s a fantastic way to make extra money. But it lowers prices.

Because they’re not concerned with their ROI, they can underprice the
competition.

This exerts downward pressure on the prices. It’s great for guests, but it limits
the upside for hosts – especially those of us who are fulltime investors.
The solution? Be the best. Don’t compete on offering the unit with the lowest
price. Compete on offering the BEST unit. Be the Hilton, not the Motel 6.
When your unit is amazing, guests will gladly spend extra money to stay
there.

#4: It’s superfun.

I enjoy tearing myself away from a computer screen. Managing a vacation
rental (and rental properties in general) gives me variety. I can interact with
flesh and blood people, rather than stare at pixels. It’s a great change of pace.

And it’s not like I’m in traditional “customer service,” interacting with grumpy
people. I’m hanging out with people while they’re on vacation.They’re relaxed,
they’re in a great mood, and there’s here to have fun.
#5: It’s the best of global travel ... under my own roof.
One of my favorite aspects of traveling is meeting people from around the
world. By running a vacation rental, I can capture that same experience in my
own building.
My first guest, for example, was born in Spain and shares my love for
exploring the Caribbean islands. She and I chatted at length about our travels
in that region, swapping notes about our favorite off the beaten path coves
and beaches.

It’s the same type of conversation that I’d have with a random traveler at a
hostel or a café.,the type of international human connection that I love most
about travel. And I dig that it happens under my own roof, and that I get paid
for doing it.

But that said, a business is a business,and it needs to turn a profit. So how

lucrative has this been so far?

Now, Show me the Number !!

I’m trying to scratch an itch from a longheld curiosity: How much more (or
less) could I earn by running a vacation rental, as compared with traditional
landlording?

My subject property: a luxury one bedroom apartment 672sqft in a prime Mont

Kiara location.

I’ve owned this property for 6 years, renovated it last August 2015, and I could
rent it to a traditional, longterm tenant for RM2800 /month.

Instead, I’m offering it to travelers as a vacation rental.

First, let’s set an income goal:

Price on a OneYear Lease: RM 2800 / month

(Less vacancy projection for longterm rental / Agent Commission RM250

/month )

Benchmark for Comparison: RM 2500 /month

Vacation Rental Additional Expenses:

RM400 /month utilities (including electricity, gas, cable, internet)

RM150 /month consumer disposables (refilling the sponges, soap, shampoo,

etc.)

RM 400 /month management (20 hrs/month at rm20/hour)

Projected minimum revenue needed to breakeven: RM3450 /month.

In other words – unless we hit that base rate, it’s more sensible to rent this
unit to a long term tenant on a one year lease.

In the month of November, I’ve earned RM 5518. That’s a total “profit” of

RM1288 for the first month (after paying myself for my time).

Here is how the case studies shook out so far

Occupancy

My biggest fear is enduring massive vacancy rates. As any landlord could tell
you, nothing is more expensive than vacancy.

Fortunately, that fear is totally unfounded.

The apartment is almost fully booked from December through March, and I’m
already fielding inquiries into June and July, from guests trying to reserve the
apartment 3-4 months in advance.

Score!

There’s an expression among landlords: “If your occupancy is 100 percent,

your rent is too low.” Borrowing a page from that playbook, I decided to raise
my rates from

RM 280/night to RM300/night for weekdays ( Sunday – Thursday)

RM 320/night to RM360/night for weekends ( Friday and Saturday)

(Update March 2016: I’ve raised the room rates again; it’s now between
RM320 to RM360 per night.)

Every guest pays an additional RM60 cleaning fee, regardless of the length of
their stay, and puts down a RM300 refundable security deposit. An extra
guest is RM50/night, and pets are RM30/night.

Guest Quality

Well, there’s actually one risk that’s even more expensive than vacancy:
destruction.
If your guest turns Dark Knight and trashes your home, you could
(theoretically) lose tens of thousands. The newspapers occasionally report
headline grabbing horror stories of Airbnb guests gone wild.
Fortunately, I play to a higher caliber of guest. The guests are topnotch:
affable, worldly and fascinating.

Artists –The unit is located at Solaris Dutamas Publika, a popular upscale

neighbourhood shopping mall aimed at young expatriate clientele, the creative
and a number of high end clothing boutiques, novelty stores and play a host
to a variety of art galleries, events space and set to be the next gastronomic
destination in KL” This means I’m hosting many artists and craftsman:
entrepreneurs who traverse the nation, selling homemade organic soaps or
recycled clocks at summertime festivals (and making a decent dime).

Travelers –And of course I’m getting my fair share of “traditional” vacationers

– people who want to visit the experience the vibrant Mont Kiara area, excited
to spend a weekend dining at posh restaurants, drinking fancy wines or
crafted cocktails, dancing at concerts, and doing all kinds of other city stuff.

INCOME

During the past 4 months, I’ve grossed RM26780 through this vacation rental
– an average of RM3245 per month. If I projected that out, I’d be grossing
RM38940 per year on just this single apartment alone.

Check In / Check Descript Amount

Calculation
Out ion
2/11/2015 – Airbnb RM873
(280x3) + 60 – 3%
5/11/2015 Deposit
6/11/2015 – Airbnb RM737 (320x2) + 60 + 60 (pets) –
8/11/2015 Deposit 3%
12/11/2015 – Airbnb RM 1736 (280 x 3 + 320x2) + 60 +
17/11/2015 Deposit 250 (extra guest)
20/11/2015 – Airbnb RM950
(320x2 + 280) + 60
23/11/2015 Deposit
26/11/2015 – Airbnb RM1222
(320 x 2 + 280 x 2) + 60
30/11/2015 Deposit
Total Days – 17 RM5518
On the surface, that sounds awesome. But let’s look at the time commitment
and expenses.

Description Amount
Cable TV – Astro Basic Package RM69.80
Electricity - TNB RM283.90
Water Bill RM 30.00
P1 Broadband RM88.00
Consumable RM100.00
Cleaning Fees RM 40 per visit RM200.00
Gas Malaysia RM8.00
Total RM780
In conclusion:

I’m putting RM1288 in my pocket every month after expenses as an

Airbnb host.

Is that good or bad? It depends.

No investment is “good” or “bad” in a vacuum. Every investment should be

compared to the next best alternative.

In this case, the “next best” is the rent I’d collect from a traditional one year
lease.

The apartment would rent for RM2800 per month, which means that I’m
capturing a RM108 monthly gain. ( Based on property value at Rm680,000
with 20 years loans)

In other words, I’m earning an extra RM1180 per monthby running an

impromptu “bed and breakfast” rather than landlording over a traditional
tenant.

How much extra work does that entail? Not much.

Answering inquiries is easy –

I reply to emails through my phone. It’s about as much of a hassle as
checking Twitter or posting to Facebook. Time commitment: negligible.

Meeting guests is unnecessary.

The Airbnb website automatically emails the guests directions and key
location. I suggest you just add an inexpensive keyless entry system to the
door. Result: The check in process is totally handoff

Playing tourguide is automated.

I wrote a “Welcome Guide” that offers the guests tips on the best places
nearby to eat, drink, shop, etc., along with directions on how to get there by
walking, bicycling, train, bus and car. The “welcome guide” also includes tips
about the apartment (e.g. “this is how to operate the washing machine”) and
the Wifi password.

Automation rocks, y’all.

The biggest hassle is turnover. Cleaning the apartment takes about 1.5 hours,
and happened 6 times in the case studies. That means cleaning takes 9
hours/month. Let’s round the total time commitment up to 10 hours/month, to
include emails and other ancillary tasks.

Time:10 hours/month

Extra Income:Rm1180 /month

Hourly Rate:RM118/hour

Not bad, if I say so myself.

How about when you scale it to have more than 3 units in the same building,
it’s the same amount of time that you going to invest and maybe a slightly
higher commitment hours yet the income might have double or triple ??

Pricing Strategy for Airbnb

Airbnb pricing is defined in the following way:

• the basic nightly price, defined by the host

• cleaning fees (optional), defined by the host
• a host service fees, charged by Airbnb to the host, as 3% of every
reservation.
• a guest service fees, charged by Airbnb to the guests, as a 6-12% of
the total nightly price (basic price + cleaning fees)
• Taxes (depending on the country of residence of the guest) is added
by Airbnb as a % of the guest service fee
• a conversation fees, added by Airbnb if the currency the guest is
paying in is different from the one used by the host, as a 3% of the total
amount the guest is paying

Knowing just how much to charge for your place on Airbnb has been an
historical challenge for Airbnb hosts.

The challenge exists irrespective of the method you’ve used for pricing and
valuing your property.

Whether you’ve based it on a calculation of your total expenses plus a desired

profit margin, or simply replicating what you see the local competition doing –
how do you really know you aren’t leaving money on the table, or whether
your competition have any more of an idea of what’s right when it comes to
pricing than you do (hint: they don’t!)

When it comes to pricing, your one and only goal needs to be finding your
pricing ‘sweet spot’ – the price you charge that maximizes your occupancy
rate as well as cost per night.

Over-quoting or under-charging both represent missed opportunities with

Airbnb.

To overcome this challenge, Airbnb have introduced pricing tools to assist

hosts in circumventing their pricing blind spots. Airbnb use the trove of host
and guest data (things like the travel trends, your listing’s amenities and
features and how much guests have paid for similar listings) to recommend
optimal nightly prices that hosts are then able to charge for their place.

Airbnb’s goal is to transform what is an otherwise ‘best-efforts’ guessing game

into a data-driven, evidence-based calculation of nightly prices that maximize
a hosts’ earning potential.
So how does it work? And is it reliable? Can you trust Airbnb, and even if
these tips do maximize bookings, do they increase the occupancy rate at the
expense of the nightly fee you’re able to charge?

We explore and answer these and many other questions below to ensure you
walk away knowing how to maximize your full earning potential.

How Does It Work?

The easiest way to think about how the Airbnb Pricing Tip tool works is to
think about how hotels charge different prices for different nights.
A hotel in KLCC vicinity knows it can charge a lot more for a room during the
F1 Season being hosted in Kuala Lumpur than it can when the F1 Season are
finished.

A hotel knows it has a longer time frame to gradually reduce the price of un-
booked nights six months out from today’s date, than it does one week out
from today.

A hotel knows how booked out they and other hotels in the local area are, and
the availability of alternative accommodation options that exists for guests
looking for
The Airbnb Pricing Tool works in the same way.

Airbnb have far greater visibility than individual guests do over all the factors
that indicate current levels of supply and demand, as well as the relationship
of these variables to listings such as yours.

It takes all of these factors into consideration to recommend a price tip that
aims to strike the optimal balance between maximizing bookings with
charging the maximum possible amount per night for each of those bookings.

In some instances, it may recommend charging less than you may think
you’re otherwise able to get, based on the assumption that a slightly lower
cost-per-night is still a better outcome than having your place remain vacant
for an entire week (90% of something is better than 100% of nothing, right!?)

Orphan Nights

The term 'Orphan Nights' refers to a vacant night between two bookings.
These nights are usually very difficult to book.

The goal is to increase the likelihood that the subset travelers who are in the
market for a one-night stay choose your listing.
When is the best time to decrease or increase your price?

I would recommend having a low price compared to other listings similar to

yours with similar location, size, amenities... until you get at least the 2 or 3
first reviews.

Once people start contacting you more and more you can increase the price
until you find your sweet spot. You will need those first reviews to appear
higher on the searches.

Another time to increase or decrease your pricing is by checking when is your

peak season. Close to the beach is summer, mountain winter, maybe a
conference close by during a week in September, Christmas and New Year
eve celebration in downtown City Centre?

Try to optimize your pricing for those days when there's a peak and lower it
when you enter the low season. Airbnb now offers a price suggestion tool that
can help you find the best price at any point of time but I would suggest trying
manual first and using this tool and by comparing to others as the best way to
start.

Try playing with pricing for entire weeks or months, it really works well for
people who is looking for long term rentals. Do the same with the weekends.
Maybe you can charge a bit more during weekends and less during
weekdays. Use the calendar to set those prices in advance to avoid surprises.

It really comes down to knowing your market. What’s the vacancy rate like at
various times of the year? What are similar properties in your market doing? If
they are dropping their prices aggressively, they will make you look expensive
and it will be difficult to ensure a high occupancy rate.

It is very important that each potential guest look over any listing they might
be considering, quite carefully. That's not to say most hosts are aiming to put
in odd listing requirements, or hidden fees. But, if you go in assuming two
people can stay for one night, for one fee, you might be confused when the
total is off by RM50 a night (or whatever) if you didn't notice an "extra guest"
fee.

There are some rookie host where they will try to confused the guest by
having a low rental price per night, however, there will add in some hidden
cost

Daily Rental Price – RM 120 in which the surrounding area with the same
amenities and unit might be around RM250 per night inclusive of everything
for 2 guests, but the host will have a listing price of RM120, for one guest and
“extra guest” will be charged RM100 with a cleaning fees for RM80 which will
sum up for RM300 excluding the taxes
Conclusion - 8 lessons I learned as an Airbnb Host

#1: This Isn’t Real Estate; It’s Hospitality

Traditional rentals are “commodities.” You’re leasing four walls and a roof,
plus the most bare-bones level of service (urgent repairs).
Airbnb hosting is service-sector hospitality. Your role is closer to that of a
hotel concierge than a landlord. You offer guests a complimentary bottle of
water; provide directions to nearby landmarks; answer questions about the
weather. You’re not leasing some assembled drywall and roofing shingles;
you’re selling an experience and a feeling.

#2: You Learn Awesome Customer Service

Because hosting falls into the “hospitality” industry, you’re competing on
great customer service — which means you learn these skills quickly.
For example: Technically, Airbnb says that the host should provide enough
consumables to get started for a week, and long-term guests should replenish
supplies. When long-term guests ask for more laundry detergent or trash
bags, I could theoretically point to that page on the Airbnb site, and say, “Not
my problem, yo.”
But why act petty? Just buy the detergent. It takes 10 minutes, it costs RM15,
and it results in a happier guest. Remember, you’re selling an experience, not
just four walls and a roof.

#3: You Meet Fascinating People

As an Airbnb host, you meet people who leading thrilling, incredible lives you
can’t imagine:

• British couple who travel 200+ days a year, blogging and perform wherever
they go. Did I mention that they are very talented musician who played
extraordinary percussion
• Spanish who fly to Malaysia specifically for an electronic music party.
• A German engineer who came to the Malaysia for a oil and gas project
• A Taiwanese couple who are here for a business trip to look for wild honey
while staying at my unit. I managed to link up with my friend in Sarawak
and concluded a deal worth more than RM1.5million (Shhh, not to
mention I get my fair share of referral commission)

Meeting people from across the world is one of my favorite aspects of

traveling; I love that I can replicate that experience by “bringing the world” to
my home.

#4: Set Expectations Upfront

There’s no clear “model” for the Airbnb experience: Are you staying at a
hotel? Crashing at a friend’s house?

Due to this ambiguity, there’s no clear set of expectations. Some people are
comfortable with “whatever,” while others expect the same service they’d get
at a 5-star hotel.
Prepare for this by providing every item you’d typically find in hotel rooms:
• Ironing board
• Coffee maker
• Hairdryer
• Full-length mirror
• Many, many towels and hooks

Guests have recommended everything ranging from a toaster to a blender to

fuzzy foot slippers. How do I separate great suggestions from outrageous
ideas?

Use the Sheraton Standard. My litmus test is: “Would you find this at a 4-star
hotel, like the Sheraton or Hilton?” If the answer is yes — like a hairdryer — I’ll
provide it. But if they’re asking for a custom pair of fuzzy slippers, well, that
might be a step too far.

#5: Complaints Are a Way of Life (But Don’t Let Them Bother You)
I joke that the main lesson I’ve learned is that there’s no flippin’ limit to
what people will complain about.

One guy complained that there’s a step between the kitchen and the adjoining
bedroom. He’d prefer the floor be step-free. (He has no physical
limitations.)
• One person complained that there’s no rocking chair for reading, so I added
one, and the next guest complained that the chair took up too much
space.
• My personal favorite: The guest who called to say that they couldn’t enjoy
the balcony because the weather is too hot and humid. Like, why are
you calling? What do you want me to do?

You can’t please everyone. All you can do is meet “the Sheraton standard”
(as I call it), ask for feedback, and relax. I have a 5-Star average rating on
Airbnb, which tells me I’m doing a good job.

#6: It’s Emotional

Hearing negative responses to your own home — however infrequent they
may be — is emotionally tough.

One harsh reality of monetizing your house: You open your home to public
criticism. In that regard, it’s similar to writing a book or blog, playing music or
undertaking any other creative act. You create something that’s deeply
personal (like remodeling your home), put it into the public arena, and you’ll
have fans, and you’ll have haters.

Here’s the corollary: You can have 50 amazing, kind, wonderful guests and
just one solitary criticizing guest, but the latter is the one who consumes your
mental attention.

#7: Rapid-Fire List of Tactical Tips for Airbnb Hosts

Here’s a brain dump of tactical tips I’d share with other Airbnb hosts:
• Leave “tourist guides” (like a beautiful book about local restaurants) on the
coffee table.
• Leave a welcome guide / FAQ list on the coffee table (which says things
like, “The light switch to the bedroom is behind the door.”)
• Refill your ice cube trays during every turnover.
• Clean the awkward space between your window ledge and the outside
world (the outer window ledge).
• Check the inside of the microwave, dishwasher, oven, and all drawers, in
case the guests left anything behind.
• Never rent to high schoolers.
• Set expectations clearly, especially around check-in procedures. A lot of
people think it’s okay to show up at anytime, as if you’re going to be
there 24/7. Again, that goes back to the “hotel” framework: people are
used to showing up to a hotel at anytime, so some people project that
same expectation onto their Airbnb host. Be clear about what time is
appropriate for check-in, and include this in your welcome email.
• Create a list of “fun stuff to do” if they arrive early (before check-in time) —
recommended restaurants, cafes, coffee shops, parks, etc. Include this
in the welcome email.
• Write the directions to the house in the welcome email; don’t just tell them
to GPS the address. It shows an extra level of service.
• Replace the shower liner (that plastic liner) every few months. No matter
how spotless the rest of your house, if the shower liner has soap scum,
the rest of the place will “feel” unclean.

Seriously, don’t rent to high schoolers.

#8: The Bottom Line

At the end of the day, here’s the ultimate conclusion:
The money I’ve earned as an Airbnb host is better than what I’d collect as
a traditional landlord. But that comparison is apples-to-oranges. One is active;
the other is passive. One is hospitality; the other is real estate. They’re not the
same industry.
But they are both fascinating. But they are both fascinating.
And they can both be lucrative.